From curiosity to capability

AI education that moves people from understanding to building.

LaShea Conner-Gaten

I turn “I should learn AI” into “I built something with AI.”
AI educator · Speaker · Founder

Former Deloitte Chief of Staff · Global AI & technology

As founder & CEO of CAI Collective Group, I connect enterprise transformation experience with practical, human-centered AI education. I help people—teams, leaders, educators, students and first-time builders—evaluate AI, use it responsibly and move from experimenting with tools to building purposeful assistants and workflows.

My work spans live instruction, guided workshops, speaking and custom AI solutions—from MissionReady AI for operations readiness and Fair Chance Orbit for workforce development to Aspire U’s youth learning in Python and Roblox Luau.

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AI Fluency Rising StarAgentforce for Good · 2026

Recognition · 2026AI Fluency Rising StarAgentforce for Good
Previous experienceChief of StaffGlobal AI & technology
Founder & CEOCAI Collective GroupThink · Do · Transform

Teaching preview

Event AI Studio™ — Powered by PCMA

Course introduction • 4 minCaptions included in video

Presented using LaShea’s AI digital twin. Curriculum and instruction developed by CAI Collective Group.

Practical AI learning for event professionals, combining responsible use, applied exercises and building assistants.

Course design

7.5: continuing education hours
6: live sessions
4: applied AI assistants

Recognition

Building in public, recognized for it.

Agentforce for Good

2026 program

AI Fluency Rising Star

Fair Chance Orbit™

Recognized as an AI Fluency Rising Star in the 2026 Agentforce for Good program for Fair Chance Orbit™, a workforce readiness platform for justice-impacted talent. The recognition was announced publicly by the program organizer.

Organizer’s award announcement

San Diego Military Summit

October 23, 2026

Third Place

MissionReady AI™

Awarded $15,000 in AI development support through Futran Solutions on AWS to continue developing MissionReady AI™.

LaShea with a group at the award presentation holding the San Diego Military Summit third place $15,000 AI development support check — Third place • $15,000 in AI development support • October 23, 2026

Full, uncropped photograph of the award presentation — Third place • $15,000 in AI development support • October 23, 2026

What I teach

Think bigger.
Build something real.

AI fluency meets hands-on building. My teaching connects leadership, responsible decisions and practical tools to the work people actually do.

Human-centered learning.
Enterprise perspective.
Builder’s mindset.

Think critically about AI

Separate useful answers from confident mistakes. Explore accuracy, bias and the human judgment every AI workflow needs.

Build trust into every workflow

Make responsible decisions about sensitive data, privacy and the guardrails that keep people at the center.

Turn prompts into practical work

Move beyond one-off questions. Redesign a repetitive task into a clear, repeatable AI-supported workflow.

Build an assistant with purpose

Turn a real task into a focused AI assistant—from defining its job to testing how it responds.

Build, buy or borrow?

Use CAI’s decision framework to choose the right path for an AI capability—not just the newest tool.

Lead the change, not just the tool

Connect AI adoption to the people doing the work. Build clarity, confidence and trust as teams change how they operate.

Who I work with

Teams, leaders, educators, students, entrepreneurs and community organizations—anyone curious about AI, at any starting point. No technical background needed.

How we learn

Live lectures, guided workshops, cohort programs and recorded materials—captioned, hands-on and paced for real schedules.

Custom AI solutions

Selected products I’ve designed and built.

I turn real-world needs into purpose-built digital experiences—from connected operations and workforce navigation to interactive learning. Each product brings together the user journey, a practical workflow and a clear reason to build.

MissionReady AI prototype showing a fiber inspection kit workflow and role-based entry points — Prototype interface · A fiber inspection kit workflow, with entry points for requesting, issuing, receiving and approving equipment.

Operations readiness

Third place · San Diego Military Summit 2026

MissionReady AI™

An AI-supported platform that connects tool and equipment accountability from request to return. Teams can follow kit custody, identify missing or damaged items, and review discrepancies before confirming readiness—all around one operational record.

Case notes

Tracks tool and equipment accountability across kits and custodians.
Surfaces discrepancies so teams can resolve them before they affect readiness.
Recognized with third place at the San Diego Military Summit, October 2026.
Currently a prototype; no performance outcomes are claimed.

Fair Chance Navigator prototype showing talent and employer orbits, matching and human review — Prototype interface · Fair Chance Navigator introduces talent and employer pathways, matching, human review and retention within the Fair Chance Orbit initiative.

Workforce development

AI Fluency Rising Star · Salesforce Agentforce for Good 2026

Fair Chance Orbit™

A workforce-readiness ecosystem for justice-impacted talent. Fair Chance Navigator connects preparation and employer pathways, with matching and human review designed into the journey—helping people move from barriers toward a clear next step.

Case notes

Guides justice-impacted talent through readiness steps toward fair-chance employment.
Designed to connect learners with pathways and employer-ready preparation.
Recognized as an AI Fluency Rising Star project, Salesforce Agentforce for Good 2026.
Currently a prototype; no placement or outcome metrics are claimed.

Youth learning · Python & Roblox Luau

Aspire U Institute™

Learn • Code • Play comes to life through Python coding and Lua (Roblox Luau) for building in Roblox. Young learners develop coding skills and create their own interactive experiences—not just consume technology. CodeQuest Raceway and LearnQuest Candy World bring exploration, skill building and creative problem-solving into a colorful, game-inspired platform.

Explore Aspire U

Case notes

Youth coding includes Python and Lua (Roblox Luau) for building in Roblox.
The home screen brings two learning pathways together: CodeQuest Raceway and LearnQuest Candy World.
Learning worlds and power-ups organize the journey around exploration and skill building.
Builder badges, a trophy room and final creations make progress and completed work visible.
Founded by LaShea as a youth-focused learning initiative connecting AI literacy, coding and creative problem-solving.

About LaShea

Enterprise perspective.
Builder’s mindset.

AI educator.
Speaker. Founder.

LaShea presenting MissionReady AI at a podium at the San Diego Military Summit, with her slide on screen — Presenting MissionReady AI™ • San Diego Military Summit 2026

LaShea Conner-Gaten

Founder & CEO · CAI Collective Group

I connect organizational leadership, workforce development and practical AI education. My work brings enterprise experience into learning experiences and products that keep people at the center.

Before founding CAI Collective Group and Aspire U Institute, I served as a Deloitte Chief of Staff in global AI and technology. Today, I bring that perspective to the classroom, the stage and hands-on building.

Former Chief of Staff

CAI Collective GroupFounder & CEO

Continuing scholarship

Doctor of Education In progress

Organizational Leadership · University of San Diego, School of Leadership and Education Sciences

Education · UIUC

Master of Education

Ed.M., Organizational Leadership, Human Resource Development & Systems

Builder credentials

Lovable AI Solutions Partner

Certified Web & App Builder

Teaching & speaking

From the classroom to the summit stage.

A record of teaching appointments and speaking engagements, with dates and organizations.

Teaching & academic appointments

Lead Instructor & Curriculum Creator — Event AI Studio™
PCMA Institute · 7-week cohort AI program for event professionals
2026 – Present
GEN S 250 Instructor of Record — Undergraduate Seminar, Aztec Scholars Initiative
San Diego State University
Fall 2016

View full teaching history

Spring 2014 · Spring 2015 · Spring 2016
ENG 498 Course Director — ELA Leadership, College of Engineering
University of Illinois
Spring 2015 · Fall 2015
ENG 198 — Technical Communication, College of Engineering
University of Illinois
Fall 2014 · Fall 2015
ENG 100 Course Director — Introduction to Engineering
University of Illinois
Spring 2015
EPSY 203 — Diversity and Social Justice Education, Intergroup Dialogues
University of Illinois
Summer 2014 · Summer 2015
Summer Scholars Course Director, College of Engineering
University of Illinois

Speaking & thought leadership

Upcoming: Summit Lead — PCMA AI Summit
PCMA flagship event · Miami
Jan 2027
Upcoming: Panelist — “Managing AI Cybersecurity Risk”
BlueTech Week 2026 Cyber Track · TMA BlueTech, Cyber Center of Excellence & Space Force Association San Diego · National University Spectrum Campus
Nov 18, 2026

View full speaking history

Oct 2026
Finalist Pitch — MissionReady AI™
San Diego Military Summit · San Diego Business Chamber
Oct 2026
Featured Speaker — “Raising Digital Creators”
Top 100 Community Alliance Global Summit (virtual)
May 21, 2026
AI Session Panelist — Leadership North County Business Session
Frontwave Arena · at the invitation of CSU San Marcos
Aug 2026
Governance & PM Lead — AI Trailblazers Social Impact Hack-AI-thon
San Diego
Date not provided
Workshop Series — “Demystifying AI for the Business Owners Who Need It Most”
County of San Diego Black Chamber of Commerce
2027
Talk submitted for consideration — TEDxUCDavis 2027 (“IgniTED”)
“The AI Revolution: Who Gets to Build, and Own, the Future?”
Forthcoming
Author (forthcoming) — The AI Revolution: Who Gets to Build, and Own, the Future?
First book, in development with a publisher

Work with LaShea

Let’s build
what’s next.

AI education. Speaking. Custom solutions.
Let’s start with a conversation.

Discuss an engagement

LaShea Conner-Gaten

Founder & CEO · CAI Collective Group

lconnergaten@caicollectivegroup.com

Connect

Connect on LinkedIn

What happens next

1Share your goal—audience, format, and what learners should be able to do.
2We talk it through on a short call and agree on scope.
3You receive a plan—curriculum, workshop run-of-show, or product outline.

AI education that moves people from understanding to building.

Event AI Studio™ — Powered by PCMA

Building in public, recognized for it.

AI Fluency Rising Star

Third Place

Think bigger.Build something real.

Think critically about AI

Build trust into every workflow

Turn prompts into practical work

Build an assistant with purpose

Build, buy or borrow?

Lead the change, not just the tool

Selected products I’ve designed and built.

MissionReady AI™

Fair Chance Orbit™

Aspire U Institute™

Enterprise perspective.Builder’s mindset.

LaShea Conner-Gaten

Doctor of Education In progress

Master of Education

Lovable AI Solutions Partner

From the classroom to the summit stage.

Teaching & academic appointments

Lead Instructor & Curriculum Creator — Event AI Studio™

GEN S 250 Instructor of Record — Undergraduate Seminar, Aztec Scholars Initiative

ENG 498 Course Director — ELA Leadership, College of Engineering

ENG 198 — Technical Communication, College of Engineering

ENG 100 Course Director — Introduction to Engineering

EPSY 203 — Diversity and Social Justice Education, Intergroup Dialogues

Summer Scholars Course Director, College of Engineering

Speaking & thought leadership

Upcoming: Summit Lead — PCMA AI Summit

Upcoming: Panelist — “Managing AI Cybersecurity Risk”

Finalist Pitch — MissionReady AI™

Featured Speaker — “Raising Digital Creators”

AI Session Panelist — Leadership North County Business Session

Governance & PM Lead — AI Trailblazers Social Impact Hack-AI-thon

Workshop Series — “Demystifying AI for the Business Owners Who Need It Most”

Talk submitted for consideration — TEDxUCDavis 2027 (“IgniTED”)

Author (forthcoming) — The AI Revolution: Who Gets to Build, and Own, the Future?

Let’s buildwhat’s next.

Think bigger.
Build something real.

Enterprise perspective.
Builder’s mindset.

Let’s build
what’s next.